There’s been much discussion to the effect that Barack Obama chose to recess-appoint Dr. Donald Berwick to run Medicare and Medicaid because the White House wanted to avoid a contentious debate over Berwick’s support for health care rationing and his championing of European government health care systems. With midterm elections less than four months away, and a large part of the American public in favor of repealing Obamacare, such a debate would not be good for Democrats.